Legal claims defining the scope of protection. Each claim is shown in both the original legal language and a plain English translation.
1. A system, comprising: a processor; and a computer-readable memory comprising computer-program instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising: receiving credit-card-transaction information concerning a prospective credit-card transaction determining whether a purchaser initiating the prospective credit-card transaction is identified in available data as being a user for only a single mobile communication device or for multiple mobile communication devices; determining, in response to determining that the purchaser is identified as being the user of only the single mobile communication device, whether the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of a credit-card-transaction terminal; determining, in response to determining that the purchaser is identified as being the user of multiple mobile communication devices, whether each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal; initiating, in response to determining that the single mobile communication device is not within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, a first authentication process; initiating, in response to determining that the multiple mobile communication devices are not each within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, a second authentication process; and generating authorization information for the prospective credit-card transaction in response to any of (a) determining that the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (b) determining that each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (c) a positive result from the first authentication process, and (d) a positive result from the second authentication process.
A system authorizes credit card transactions by checking the location of the purchaser's mobile device(s) against the location of the payment terminal. It determines if the purchaser is associated with one or multiple mobile devices. If one device, it checks if that device is near the terminal. If multiple devices, it checks if all devices are near the terminal. If the device(s) aren't close enough, an authentication process (like entering a PIN or using biometrics) is triggered. The transaction is approved if the device(s) are nearby OR if the authentication is successful.
2. A computer-program product comprising a computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable program code that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising: receiving credit-card-transaction information concerning a prospective credit-card transaction determining whether a purchaser initiating the prospective credit-card transaction is identified in available data as being a user for only a single mobile communication device or for multiple mobile communication devices; determining, in response to determining that the purchaser is identified as being the user of only the single mobile communication device, whether the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of a credit-card-transaction terminal; determining, in response to determining that the purchaser is identified as being the user of multiple mobile communication devices, whether each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal; initiating, in response to determining that the single mobile communication device is not within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, a first authentication process; initiating, in response to determining that the multiple mobile communication devices are not all within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, a second authentication process; and generating authorization information for the prospective credit-card transaction in response to any of (a) determining that the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (b) determining that each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (c) a positive result from the first authentication process, and (d) a positive result from the second authentication process.
A computer program authorizes credit card transactions by checking the location of the purchaser's mobile device(s) against the location of the payment terminal. It determines if the purchaser is associated with one or multiple mobile devices. If one device, it checks if that device is near the terminal. If multiple devices, it checks if all devices are near the terminal. If the device(s) aren't close enough, an authentication process (like entering a PIN or using biometrics) is triggered. The transaction is approved if the device(s) are nearby OR if the authentication is successful. The program is stored on a computer-readable medium and executes on a processor.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise determining, in response to determining that each of the multiple mobile communication devices is not within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card transaction terminal, whether the multiple mobile communication devices are serviced respectively by a single wireless-network service provider or by multiple wireless-network service providers.
The system described in claim 1, which authorizes credit card transactions, further analyzes the multiple mobile devices' service providers when all devices aren't near the terminal. It checks if the devices are serviced by a single wireless provider or by multiple providers. This information is used to determine the next course of action in the authorization process.
4. The system of claim 3 , wherein: the operations further comprise: initiating, in response to determining that the multiple mobile communication devices are each serviced by a single wireless-network-service provider, the second authentication process; initiating, in response to determining that the multiple mobile communication devices are serviced by multiple wireless-network-service providers, a third authentication process; and the generating operation is initiated in response to any of (a) determining that the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of a credit-card-transaction terminal, (b) determining that each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (c) a positive result of the first authentication process, (d) a positive result from the second authentication process, and (e) a positive result from the third authentication process.
Building upon the system in claim 3, if the multiple mobile devices use a single wireless provider and they're not near the terminal, a second authentication process is triggered. However, if they use multiple wireless providers, a *third* authentication process is triggered instead. Authorization is granted if any of the following conditions are met: a single device is nearby (if applicable), all multiple devices are nearby (if applicable), the first authentication passes, the second authentication passes, or the third authentication passes.
5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the third authentication process is more stringent than the second authentication process.
The system described in claim 4, which handles authentication based on the number of wireless providers for multiple devices, makes the third authentication process (used when multiple wireless providers are involved) more stringent than the second authentication process (used when a single provider is involved). This adds an extra layer of security for transactions where devices are using different networks.
6. The system of claim 4 , wherein determining whether the multiple mobile communication devices are serviced by a single wireless-network-service provider, is performed in response to determining that each of the multiple mobile communication devices is not within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card transaction terminal and in response to a positive result from the third authentication process.
In the system from claim 4, which uses different authentication processes depending on the number of wireless providers, determining the number of providers (single or multiple) is only performed if none of the multiple devices are within the defined proximity of the credit card terminal, and also, only if the third authentication process has a positive result.
7. The system of claim 6 , wherein: the operations further comprise initiating, in response to determining that the multiple mobile communication devices are not each serviced by the single wireless-network-service provider, a fourth authentication process; and the generating operation is initiated in response to any of (a) determining that the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of a credit-card-transaction terminal, (b) determining that each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (c) a positive result of the first authentication process, (d) a positive result from the second authentication process, and (e) a positive result from both of the third authentication process and the fourth authentication process.
The system described in claim 6, which determines authorization based on wireless providers, initiates a *fourth* authentication process if the multiple mobile devices are not serviced by a single provider. Authorization is granted if: a single device is nearby, all multiple devices are nearby, the first authentication is successful, the second authentication is successful, OR both the third and fourth authentication processes are successful.
8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the third authentication process is more stringent than the second authentication process.
The system from claim 7, which adds a fourth authentication step, makes the third authentication process (used when multiple wireless providers are involved) more stringent than the second authentication process (used when a single provider is involved). This provides more security during authentication.
9. The system of claim 7 , wherein the fourth authentication process is more stringent than the third authentication process.
In the system described in claim 7, the fourth authentication process is made more stringent than the third authentication process. This adds progressively more difficult security layers, especially when multiple wireless providers are involved.
10. The system of claim 7 , wherein the second authentication process is more stringent than the first authentication process.
In the system described in claim 7, the second authentication process is more stringent than the first authentication process. The stringency of authentication increases depending on whether one or multiple devices are associated with the user.
11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the operation of determining whether the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of a credit-card-transaction terminal is performed using a short-range-proximity-determination process.
In the system described in claim 1, determining if a single mobile device is near the payment terminal uses a short-range proximity detection method (e.g., Bluetooth, NFC, WiFi Direct). This allows for precise location verification.
12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the operation of determining whether each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal is performed using a short-range-proximity-determination process.
In the system described in claim 1, determining if multiple mobile devices are near the payment terminal uses a short-range proximity detection method (e.g., Bluetooth, NFC, WiFi Direct). This allows for precise location verification.
13. The system of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the authentications is performed using a photo of the user.
In the system described in claim 1, at least one of the authentication steps involves using a photo of the user for verification, providing a visual confirmation of the user's identity.
14. The system of claim 13 , wherein: the photo is stored on at least one user mobile communication device; the at least one authentication includes determining whether the photo has an age that is older than a threshold age.
The system described in claim 13, which uses a photo for authentication, stores the photo on the user's mobile device. The system also checks the age of the photo; if it's older than a certain threshold, the authentication might require additional steps or fail, ensuring the photo is reasonably current.
15. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pre-determined proximity is determined based on at least one variable of a group consisting of a time of day of the prospective credit-card transaction, a current promotion, and a cost of a product sought to be purchased by the prospective credit-card transaction.
In the system described in claim 1, the predetermined proximity (the distance considered "near" the terminal) is dynamically adjusted based on factors like the time of day, current promotions, or the cost of the item being purchased. Higher-value or unusual transactions might require a closer proximity.
16. The system of claim 1 , wherein a strictness of at least one of the authentications is established based on at least one variable of a group consisting of a time of day of the prospective credit-card transaction, a current promotion, and a cost of a product sought to be purchased by the prospective credit-card transaction.
In the system described in claim 1, the "strictness" of the authentication processes is adjusted based on factors like the time of day, current promotions, or the cost of the item being purchased. Higher-value or unusual transactions might require more rigorous authentication.
17. The computer-program product of claim 2 wherein the operations further comprise determining, in response to determining that each of the multiple mobile communication devices is not within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card transaction terminal, whether the multiple mobile communication devices are serviced respectively by a single wireless-network-service provider or by multiple wireless-network-service providers.
The computer program described in claim 2, which authorizes credit card transactions, further analyzes the multiple mobile devices' service providers when all devices aren't near the terminal. It checks if the devices are serviced by a single wireless provider or by multiple providers. This information is used to determine the next course of action in the authorization process. The program is stored on a computer-readable medium and executes on a processor.
18. A method, comprising: receiving, by a system comprising a processor, credit-card-transaction information concerning a prospective credit-card transaction; determining, by the system, whether a purchaser initiating the prospective credit-card transaction is identified in available data as being a user for only a single mobile communication device or for multiple mobile communication devices; determining, by the system, in response to determining that the purchaser is identified as being the user of only the single mobile communication device, whether the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of a credit-card-transaction terminal; determining, by the system, in response to determining that the purchaser is identified as being the user of multiple mobile communication devices, whether each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal; initiating, by the system, in response to determining that the single mobile communication device is not within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, a first authentication process; initiating, by the system, in response to determining that the multiple mobile communication devices are not each within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, a second authentication process; and generating, by the system, authorization information for the prospective credit-card transaction in response to any of (a) determining that the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (b) determining that each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (c) a positive result from the first authentication process, and (d) a positive result from the second authentication process.
A method authorizes credit card transactions by checking the location of the purchaser's mobile device(s) against the location of the payment terminal. It determines if the purchaser is associated with one or multiple mobile devices. If one device, it checks if that device is near the terminal. If multiple devices, it checks if all devices are near the terminal. If the device(s) aren't close enough, an authentication process (like entering a PIN or using biometrics) is triggered. The transaction is approved if the device(s) are nearby OR if the authentication is successful.
19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the operations further comprise determining, in response to determining that each of the multiple mobile communication devices is not within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card transaction terminal, whether the multiple mobile communication devices are serviced respectively by a single wireless-network-service provider or by multiple wireless-network-service providers.
The method described in claim 18, which authorizes credit card transactions, further analyzes the multiple mobile devices' service providers when all devices aren't near the terminal. It checks if the devices are serviced by a single wireless provider or by multiple providers. This information is used to determine the next course of action in the authorization process.
20. The method of claim 19 , wherein: the operations further comprise: initiating, in response to determining that the multiple mobile communication devices are each serviced by a single wireless-network-service provider, the second authentication process; initiating, in response to determining that the multiple mobile communication devices are serviced by multiple wireless-network-service providers, a third authentication process; and the generating operation is initiated in response to any of (a) determining that the single mobile communication device is within a pre-determined proximity of a credit-card-transaction terminal, (b) determining that each one of the multiple mobile communication devices is within the pre-determined proximity of the credit-card-transaction terminal, (c) a positive result of the first authentication process, (d) a positive result from the second authentication process, and (e) a positive result from the third authentication process.
Building upon the method in claim 19, if the multiple mobile devices use a single wireless provider and they're not near the terminal, a second authentication process is triggered. However, if they use multiple wireless providers, a *third* authentication process is triggered instead. Authorization is granted if any of the following conditions are met: a single device is nearby (if applicable), all multiple devices are nearby (if applicable), the first authentication passes, the second authentication passes, or the third authentication passes.
Unknown
December 30, 2014
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